Mormons in Afghanistan and Iraq
May 20, 2009 by DH
Filed under Mormon Middle East
Are there Mormons serving in the military in Afghanistan and Iraq?
Yes, members of the Mormon church are spread across more than 150 countries and number roughly 13 million. Some of these members are military men and women serving their respective countries in wars across the world. Politics and opinions aside regarding the current wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, it is interesting to read about these faithful members and their lives in the church during their military service.
Mormons in Afghanistan
LDS Church News recently had an article about some Mormons in the U.S. military currently serving in Afghanistan. Highlights include:
- 400 members in 40 different locations
- One official LDS District in Afghanistan called the Afghanistan Military District (A district is a number of smaller congregations.) and was created in July 2008
- It is part of the Middle East/Africa North Area
- There are four distinct military branches and smaller servicemen groups.
- The Afghanistan District Presidency maintain contact with the Middle East Desk and The Church Military Relations Division to administer affairs of the church to the members in Afghanistan.
- In many areas of Afghanistan Mormon military members observe the Sabbath on Friday so as to be courtesy of the culture that is present there as Islam’s holy day is Friday.
- Worship services may include:
“Each week Latter-day Saints receive a devotional message and other important news from the Church through the district presidency. To help relieve some of the stresses of serving in a war zone, they also are provided with DVDs and CD recordings of “Music and the Spoken Word,” Church devotionals and general conference through the Church Military Relations Division. The Brigham Young University football team has provided DVDs for members from time to time as well.”
LDS military district in Afghanistan brings blessings of service
Mormons in Iraq
Similarly there was recently an article written by a Mormon who is currently deployed in Iraq. His name is Eric Russell and he explained what it is like going to church in Iraq and the organizational aspects of the Mormon church and how it functions in a war zone. It is very similar to a lot of the details from the Afghanistan situation. It is a fascinating article and worth a few minutes of your time.
Going to Church in Iraq — Eric Russell By Common Consent
Comments
2 Responses to “Mormons in Afghanistan and Iraq”Trackbacks
Check out what others are saying about this post...[...] East, such as the Tehran Iran Mission. There are also Mormons serving in the military who hold Mormon church services in Afghanistan and Iraq and Mormons in Dubai. Finally if you want to go a little farther East, the LDS Church has a [...]
[...] membership in Afghanistan nor missions, buildings or temples. But we have written previously of the LDS Afghanistan Military District. LDS Church News just had another article about LDS members serving in the military in [...]